Sálvio Penna was born in Sabará and his entire family has worked at Belgo Mineira.

His father was a steelworker in the blast furnaces and the family lived in a worker’s village under the company’s control.

Later, Sálvio moved to Contagem in Belo Horizonte to work at Belgo Mineira’s drawing mill.

In 1971, he was arrested by the military police.